Why Certification Systems Aren’t Working and What We Can Do About It.

The book Reinventing Green Building, by Jerry Yudelson, will be available about June 1st. It’s full of detailed statistical analysis of how green building in the US has hit the wall the past few years, commentary from two dozen industry leaders, and detailed recommendations on how to start growing the green building movement once again.

Buildings and their associated systems are the largest source of greenhouse gases in the world. The 2030 Challenge aims to produce zero net -energy from new North American construction by 2030 while achieving a 50% reduction in carbon emissions from existing buildings. With less than 4% of commercial and residential structures in the U.S. and Canada certified by 2015, we seem destined to fall catastrophically short of this target.

Modular architecture is becoming increasingly popular for good reason – instead of lengthy construction time, homes can be completed in just a few days. Gomos is a new modular building system composed of concrete units produced in a factory that can be assembled on-site in three days flat.

Over 20 companies joined forces in building this house in Arouca, Portugal, the first ever to be built using the Gomos System. Architect Samuel Gonçalves helmed the design to showcase the simplicity and efficiency of the entire construction process. Porto-based agency Building Pictures captured this process in a short video.

With a joint construction project to neighboring cities of Frankfurt and Offenbach document their connectedness: 172 apartments built the ABG Frankfurt Holding on the former premises of the Offenbach press manufacturer MAN Roland. Yesterday, the two mayors Horst Schneider (Offenbach) and Peter Feldmann (Frankfurt) have set the break ground.

The new administrative building of the Vorarlberg Illwerke was built in six weeks of construction primarily in wood

Outdoor natural, inside nature: the 130-meter-long Illwerke Center Montafon was built by Hermann Kaufmann almost entirely of wood finished parts.
Vandans – Outside the window unfolds with its never-ending coniferous forests and its clammy each other back rocks the rugged landscape of the Montafon. Inside the desk increases at the same time, resinous wood scent in the nose. You already smell the superlatives: The recently completed Illwerke center Montafon, short IZM, with its 10,000 square meters of floor space is currently the largest timber hybrid building in the world. So it’s at least what the client, the Vorarlberg Illwerke AG.

Experience with the “Lip – Bath” provides a good basis for follow-up projects.
With a Passive House indoor swimming pool, a few years ago the spa association Lünen broke new ground. Measurement data now demonstrate that courage has paid off: When energy consumption compared to other pools high savings were achieved – the heat demand as with electricity. The monitoring of the Passive House Institute also shows that during operation further optimizations are possible. The Pioneer Building in Westphalia, it’s making it an excellent foundation for future projects. In detail, the results can be found immediately in the online platform Passipedia.